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Saturday, June 30, 2007

Gratitude 6/30/07

An early gratitude post tonight. Some things I am grateful for today:

1) I am going out tonight, for a change, thus the early post.

2) I was about to register for the Zen/IFS retreat at Tassajara today when I realized it wasn't the right thing for me. I sat with the idea for a week or so before deciding, and I'm glad I decided not to do it.

All the esoteric branches of the world's religions teach that there is within us an untarnished essence, a Self from which wisdom, healing, and spiritual energy flow. We rarely experience this Self because it is obscured by subpersonalities. Some of these try to protect us by controlling the external world or getting us to withdraw. Others are lost in the fear, pain, and shame of past traumas. As a result, we try to exile them, locking them away in inner closets. Richard Schwartz's Internal Family Systems (IFS) model provides a way to help you access the Self and bring the natural compassion and confidence of that state into your life. People who have used IFS report profound shifts in the feelings and beliefs that previously tormented them, noting that as their lives became more Self-led, they were able to find increased harmony not only within themselves but also with family, community, and planet. Through individual and group exercises, you will have opportunities to directly experience the Self as well as your subpersonalities and learn how to continue this transformative work on your own.

I am a huge fan of this system, so it seems worth the extra expense of traveling all the way to Massachusetts to do this workshop. I'm grateful that this came up when it did.